


like a tidal wave, i'll make a mess

by cvptains



Series: without any strings attached [3]
Category: Marvel, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, The Avengers - Ambiguous Fandom
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Romantic Fluff, Sleep Deprivation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-07
Updated: 2019-05-07
Packaged: 2020-02-16 18:15:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,673
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18696724
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cvptains/pseuds/cvptains
Summary: Steve's in the middle of a mission when Tony emergency calls him.





	like a tidal wave, i'll make a mess

**Author's Note:**

  * For [stxvetony](https://archiveofourown.org/users/stxvetony/gifts).



> for kara <3

Steve's back flattens to the wall. “Position?”  
  
“Right on target,” FRIDAY's voice floods his ear.  
  
“Hurray,” Steve cheers under his breath.  
  
It's nearing two in the morning, and the back alleyways of the businesses in the outskirts of Berlin are finally empty. It's nearly pitch black without the city's lights pouring in on the display, and the wintery cold chills Steve even through his insulated uniform. Steve adjusts the comm in his ear. It's a private line, only directed to FRIDAY in a secure server that Tony created for when Steve's on this type of intense mission.  
  
When the clock hits two, Steve ducks behind a garbage bin before setting up the retro-reflective curtain that Tony and Bruce made. The material in front of him only has one indication that it's there on the exterior, and it's the tag attached on the corner of it. It reads: **PROPERTY OF STARK**. Setting his shield down, Steve presses his thumb to it, and he's abruptly invisible to the world. Secure in his position, Steve waits.

There's a group of five individuals working for an underground terrorist organization that need to be apprehended before they make it to their destination. In his utility belt, there's five small patches with a hidden needle attached. He needs to apply them to their necks, then haul them safely to the awaiting Quinjet.

It's basically one of the easiest missions he's had in awhile.  
  
But it's a lot of sitting around — which Steve isn’t particularly good at. Absently, Steve folds the tag back to hide it. He's filled with nostalgia, a smile sliding on his face.  
  
_“Here's your special security blankie,” Tony had muttered, throwing the million-dollar device at Steve, carelessly._  
  
_Steve arched an eyebrow. He stopped his packing for the mission, picked up the curtain, then walked over to Tony._  
  
_“Tones?” he probed. Tony turned away. Steve frowned._  
  
_“Sweetheart?” he tried again. Tony had spun around, glaring at him._  
  
_“Oh, no, no, no, no, don't try and use 'sweetheart' on me, okay, Rogers?” he spat out.  “It won't work.”_  
  
_Steve frowned even deeper. “Tony, seriously, what's wrong? Is it — Is it the mission? Because I'll ditch it right now, if you really want me to.”_  
  
_Tony seemed to internally fight with himself for a moment. Then, finally, he deflated. He shuffled forward, allowing Steve to embrace him. Steve did so, happily but still concerned._  
  
_“You're always gone so often,” Tony murmured into Steve's collarbone. “I — I miss you. All the time.”_  
  
_Steve held onto Tony tighter. “I can stay — ”_  
  
_“No,” Tony cut him off, leaning away. “You — You have to do these missions, I understand that, just like all of us have to save the world once in awhile and like I have to make these devices for you and — all of our other endless responsibilities. I just... Constantly miss you. That's all.”_  
  
_Steve smiled a bit. He cupped Tony's face in his hands. “But I'm always with you.”_  
  
_Tony's eyes filled with warmth, but he rolled them anyway. “But I want you_ physically _here with me,” Tony complained. He was leaning gently into Steve's hands, making Steve feel so much more grounded._  
  
_“Oh, I'll physically be here,” Steve wiggled his eyebrows, “as soon as I possibly can. Right here in this bed with you, hopefully doing anything other than slee — ”_  
  
_Tony, lips pursed for the duration of Steve speaking, finally bursted out laughing. Steve's heart seized at the gorgeous display it created._  
  
_Tony pushed him away. “Oh my god, Steven, get out of here before you give this old man a heart attack.”_  
  
_“I will try my hardest to make that happen as soon as I get back,” Steve flirted._  
  
_Tony laughed brightly again, making Steve feel much more cheery than he had all day._  
  
_“I don't know if your terrible expression or if your awkward wording is what makes your flirting just_ horrible, _Rogers,” he murmured to Steve, once his laughter had abided. His eyes were bright and dancing, and the world seemed to finally be back on its axis since Tony had first shown signs of sadness._  
  
_Steve nudged his boyfriend. “You know I'm the smoothest guy you could ever get. The_ best _guy you could ever get,” he corrected, arrogantly, wiggling his eyebrows even more._  
  
_Tony uselessly glared at him. He gnawed his bottom lip. “I — What am I gonna do without you for the next few days?”_  
  
_Steve cupped Tony's cheeks again, and pulled him in for a short, sweet kiss. Tony sighed wistfully when Steve pulled away, and smiled softly when Steve leaned his forehead against his own._  
  
_“You can get sleep, talk to other people, and stay hydrated and fed,” Steve offered. “Along with holding onto the communicator I got you.”_  
  
_Tony arched an eyebrow, unimpressed. “You mean the extremely outdated to the point of offensive flip phone you gave me to contact you in 'complete emergencies'?”_  
  
_Steve grinned. “Yep.”_  
  
_Tony rolled his eyes, but he still had that sappy look on his face. “Yeah, I'll hold on to it.”_  
  
Steve snaps back to the present. He grips his utility belt, where the sibling flip phone resides.  
  
He shakes his head. He cannot be comprised for this mission, there's too much at stake. He cannot be comprised for this mission, there's too much at stake. He cannot be comprised for this mission, there's too —  
  
_BZZT BZZT. BZZT B—_  
  
The phone vibrates once and half times before Steve has it open and against his ear.  
  
“Tony?” he demands, his shoulders bunching and high with tension. There's a deep exhale on the other side of the line. “I — I swear to God if this isn't Tony Stark, I will hunt you down and invoke the fear of God into your — ”  
  
“Oh my god,” Tony's voice whispers. “ _Intense_ , Stevie.”  
  
Steve's heart seems to have finally found its position in his chest again. “I — Oh my god, Tony, you — I almost had a heart attack!”  
  
“Oh no, you'll get that when you come back,” Tony mimics. Steve is battling through relief, happiness, and pure rage.  
  
He attempts to focus on the first two.  
  
“Tony, I — ” he falters. “Thank God you're okay, I couldn't — If you got hurt and I wasn't there — ”  
  
“You would implode where you were standing,” Tony fills in.  
  
Steve opens his mouth, uselessly. Finally, he says, “Yeah. Pretty much.”  
  
“Which is what I would do if you were critically hurt on one of these missions of yours,” Tony adds, “which is actually why I called you! Crazy how all of these things line up.”  
  
Steve stays quiet. Then; “Tony... When was the last time you slept?”  
  
It's silent.  
  
“Tony.” It's no longer a question.  
  
“Probably since... You left.”  
  
That was over two days ago. Steve's jaw tightens.  
  
“Is it weird that I could literally hear that?” Tony asks.  
  
“I'm calling Rhodey,” Steve informs him. Tony hurries to disprove.  
  
“No, no, no, no, please don't, Steve!” he protests. “I didn't get to ask you to marry me!”  
  
Steve blinks.  
  
Tony breathes in a sharp inhale, almost as if he were trying to take back the words.  
  
Steve stumbles back.  
  
“Aw, fuck,” Tony curses.  
  
“M-Mar — ” Steve can't seem to talk. Or think. Or breathe. “Marry Tony. Marry you? You want Steve — You want me to marry you?”  
  
Tony's quiet. Steve waits patiently, mostly because he can't seem to find any words to say either.  
  
Tony finally says: “Is it that incredulous of an idea?”  
  
Steve gawks. “No! No, no, Tony — No, not at all. Not at all. I just — ”  
  
Tony's not talking. Steve scrambles for an assembly of his thoughts. He really wishes he was face-to-face with Tony right now.  
  
“It's just that you're.... You're Tony Stark, and I'm just — I'm Steve Rogers.”  
  
“And we could never get married,” Tony says quietly after a while. “Okay, I get it — ”  
  
_Married._  Oh, god. A light feeling suddenly blooms in Steve's chest, starting from the middle and branching out, warming his entire body up against the cold.  
  
“Tony,” Steve says sternly. “Anyone — including me! — would be... Marrying you would be the best thing that could ever happen to them.”  
  
Tony swallows.  
  
“And,” Steve continues strongly, “there are— _were_ only two reasons I was questioning it. The first being that you're _Tony Stark_. The most amazing, brilliant, gorgeous, generous man I've ever met, and I'm just — ”  
  
Tony lets out the softest scoff. “Steve Rogers. _The best guy I could ever get_. And that's pretty much it.”  
  
“Tony — ” Steve tries to protest.  
  
“No! Steve — Steve, that argument can go on for days, okay, so let's just give it up,” Tony says, very responsibly. It makes Steve smile despite... Everything. “Just... What was the second reason? Why you were hesitant?”  
  
Steve laughs softly. “Because you haven't slept in over 48 hours, you're delirious, and this seems very spur of the moment.”  
  
Tony's response is immediate. “Well, I've been staring at this ring I made you six months ago for like, the past hour, so, really... This isn't spur of the moment.”  
  
Steve blinks.  
  
“Oh,” he says faintly. “Really?”  
  
Tony's grinning, Steve can tell. “Really really.”  
  
“I — ” Steve can really only say one thing. “Yes.”  
  
Tony's dead silent.  
  
“Yes, what?” he asks slowly.  
  
Steve laughs, bright and happy. “Yes, I will marry you, Tony Stark.”  
  
“Oh my — ” Tony, finally, sounds one hundred percent awake. “Steve, I — ”  
  
A bullet whizzes past Steve's forehead. His eyes widen.  
  
“Sorry, sweetheart,” he groans, rolling underneath the dumpster as his five targets start steadily closing in on him. “We'll have to talk another time.”  
  
Tony curses. “Oh my god, Steve, I'm so sorry, I forgot about the — ”  
  
A bullet flies underneath the dumpster, and Steve dodges it but the phone is shot out of his palm. Steve blinks.  
  
He grips his shield from underneath the dumpster.  
  
The assholes are gonna pay for that. They just shot Steve's fiance.  
  
Steve smiles before rolling out and throwing his shield at the nearest one, dropping them like a sack of rocks.  
  
_Fiance_. God, Steve can't wait to get home.

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading and i hope you enjoyed this fluff! kudos, bookmarks, and comments are always welcome! <3


End file.
